SNAPSHOTS
by CreativePunk77
Summary: Ten snapshots of Harvey James Hunter's life, ranging from a newborn baby up until the end of his life. AU.
1. SNAPSHOT ONE

**SNAPSHOT ONE: NEWBORN**

"Does it have a name?"

The Headmaster sneered down at the squalling bundle of blankets, which was held by a policeman.

"Yes, I believe so… Ah, here it is!" He looked amongst the bundle to see the small note pinned to the top blanket. "Yes, his name is Harvey-"

"_Harvey?" _The Headmaster's lip curled, his sneer more pronounced. "An awful name. Take it away."

"It? You mean, the baby?" The policeman shook his head. "I'm sorry, Headmaster, but he was left on your property-"

"He was left on school property and was clearly intended for one of the parents to pick up. Was he not found near the bins?"

"Well… sort of, but I think he was left for you."

"How do you know this? What proof do you have?"

"Well… well, there's the note-"

"It simply states the child's name. That is all. Now, if it has no family to be taken to, dump it in an orphanage."

"But Sir! You look after children all of the time! Maybe you can take the little one in?"

"Looking after children as Headmaster is entirely different to actually raising one. I do not have children of my own, and I do not intend to start raising one now. Please, take the baby away."

"Sir… I believe the baby has no family to go to… Maybe look after him until we can locate his parents?"

The Headmaster growled. "Why can't social services deal with this?" But he reluctantly allowed the officer to hand over the mass of blankets. The Headmaster peered at the baby's face, and sneered:

"Seems that I am stuck with you, Harvey. We shall see how many months this lasts."

* * *

Ten months later, and the Headmaster sighed to himself. It was three in the morning and after analysing his paperwork for four hours straight, he had forced himself to settle down into sleep as he had to attend school in a couple of hours' time. Unfortunately, five minutes after he had drifted off to sleep, he was awoken by the shrill cries of a ten month old baby and was now finding himself getting out of bed and heading into the nursery.

It had been a spare room in his house, intended for non-existent visitors, which had now been converted into a nursery for his new 'ward.' The baby had seemed to like the room. The crib was padded, with a big blue blanket which the ten month old could wrap himself in. The Headmaster had gladly purchased a dummy the first day the baby was in his possession, and was reaching for it as he stepped up to the crib. The soft brown teddy bear he had purchased for the boy lay at the bottom of the crib, and the baby squalled as he picked up the bear.

"You are crying because of this?" The Headmaster rolled his eyes, sliding the dummy into the baby's mouth. "Small children are useless."

He handed the bear over to Harvey, who snuggled up to the toy, sucking on the dummy calmly. Glad that the baby had stopped crying, the Headmaster turned the mobile dangling above the crib and watched as Harvey turned his eyes up to the mobile, the small aircrafts lazily swirling round. One chubby hand reached up to try and snatch one of the plastic aircrafts, but the Headmaster gently pushed the hand down and leant over the crib.

He placed a kiss on the baby's forehead to soothe him completely and trailed a hand through the small tuft of fair hair sticking up on Harvey's head.

"Sleep now."

Hoping that the police soon found the boy's parents so that he could hand the baby over, the Headmaster hummed softly, waiting for Harvey to lull into sleep before taking his hand away and silencing his humming. He straightened up, allowing a small smile to twitch his lips, and turned away towards the door.

The silence was shattered by an ear piercing shriek, the Headmaster swiftly turning round to see Harvey writhing under the blanket, dummy sliding down his chest and his cheeks glowing red.

The Headmaster sighed. This baby was going to be a nightmare to handle.


	2. SNAPSHOT TWO

**SNAPSHOT TWO: TROUBLE**

Running off was the worst habit that came with the two-year-old boy in his care. Harvey would take every opportunity to toddle off in a different direction and the Headmaster would have to chase him all over the school. The boy would splash across the puddles in the playground, dart through the Hall and sprint down every corridor, shrieking in high pitched laughter the whole way. His babysitters were useless, each one fired after only a couple of hours. The Headmaster found it tiring searching for people to care for his ward, so today, he had left it up to his Prefects to look after the little boy when he was busy working.

He was currently sitting in his office, writing out notes for the next stage of his plan when his door suddenly slammed open. Glancing at the doorway, the Headmaster sighed.

"Harvey, where are the Prefects?"

His ward giggled. "They gone!"

"Where have they gone?"

Harvey continued to giggle as the Headmaster stood up from behind his desk and came around the front, crouching down low in front of his ward.

"You were meant to be a good boy today whilst Daddy was working. Were you bad?"

At this, Harvey's face screwed up in fear. "N-No, D-Daddy, I good."

"I _was _good, Harvey." The Headmaster sighed. "The correct phrasing is 'I _was_ good.'"

The little boy stared doe-eyed up at him, with the Headmaster struggling not to shout at him. The boy was only two years old, true, but he was already a little terror!

"W-Want to be with you, Daddy."

"You know I can't be with you all the time, my boy. Now, please go and associate yourself with the Prefects once more. They are all busy as well, so if they can watch you without worrying about you running off, then it will make their life easier."

His words seemed to fall on deaf ears, or dumb in this case, as Harvey stared up at him, mouth hanging open. Tone turning stern, the Headmaster remarked:

"Close your mouth, Harvey. You are not catching flies, and come along now, you need to go back to the Prefects."

"No! I want to be with _you!"_

"I am busy, Harvey. You need to be cared for by the Prefects in my absence." He inclined his head sharply towards his ward. "Do not make me put you on a time-out."

A loud wail rose up at the mention of the dreaded time-out, the Headmaster gritting his teeth at the dreadful noise.

"Would you stop that racket?! I should be working instead of looking after you! Now, where did you last see Rose?"

Falling silent, Harvey hung his head morosely. "Hall."

"Right, now we are getting somewhere. I want you to march yourself straight back to the Hall and sit near her whilst she conducts Assembly. You have plenty of toys and colouring books to amuse yourself. Now, off you go."

Taking the words quite literally, Harvey stiffened his posture and imitating the guards he'd seen outside of Buckingham Palace, where he and the Headmaster had gone to visit one Sunday, swung his arms up and down, lifting his knees up high. The Headmaster watched his ward go and shook his head. The boy was always doing immature things. It didn't matter that the boy was two, he should be learning how to behave properly now. _He was no longer a baby after all!_ The Headmaster sat back down behind his desk and lowered his head back to his work, hoping that Harvey would head straight to the Hall and not get distracted along the way.

Meanwhile, Harvey had grown bored of marching and was now running down the corridor, wanting to colour in his new Superhero book. Daddy had surprised him with it for his birthday a couple of months ago and he had nearly completed colouring every page. He was currently on Batman and had chosen to colour the suit in a hot pink, the mask a bright yellow. He was approaching the Hall when Rose herself stepped out and frowned down at him.

"Stop running, Harvey! Or I'll have to go and tell the Headmaster."

Harvey skidded to a halt and shook his head. "No, don't tell Daddy! I be good."

Her frown deepened at his poor grasp of the English language. "Get in there. Do you want your colouring books?"

Harvey nodded. "Want to colour."

"Very well." Rose pulled her lips into a spine-chilling smile. "Now, enter the Hall and sit at the side of the stage like a good boy."

Nodding again, Harvey waited for Rose to pull open the door, scurrying into the Hall. Blank eyes turned to look at him and Harvey waved at them. At two years of age, he had no realisation of his adoptive father's true powers and thought that the pupils who attended the school were acting. The 'childish' television shows Daddy allowed him to watch were made up of actors, a fact that the Headmaster had been keen to point out. The disdain in his voice at how people were paid to act silly to 'entertain' little children was so strong that even Harvey picked up on it. Therefore, Harvey believed the pupils were acting like robots on purpose and they were all involved in a secret show that required no involvement from him.

He passed the row of Prefects, avoiding Jeff's gleaming smile and choosing to smile up at Sarah. She was really nice to him, playing with him on her breaks and even giving him a piggyback one time! Sue and Simon scared him, from her intimidating height to his deadly silence. Peter always treated him like a baby, even though he had recently toilet trained and grown out of using a dummy! The Headmaster had got rid of his pram as well, forcing Harvey to walk miles and miles, struggling immensely to keep up with his father's long strides. The Headmaster didn't carry him often and it was rare to sit on the man's shoulders, so there were times where Harvey wished for his buggy, but he had to remind himself that he was not a baby. Jeff supplied Harvey with sweets and often creepily patted his hair, the toddler sometimes left frightened by the Deputy Prefect's actions. It was good when he was given sweets, but the Headmaster always found out, claiming that Harvey's teeth would rot and that he would take away the sweets to teach his son a lesson. It didn't seem like Jeff ever got into trouble for giving the two-year-old sweets, so Harvey was left puzzled as to why Daddy didn't get angry at Jeff and shout at him.

Harvey climbed up onto the stage, managing to maintain his balance and rushed over to his colouring books. They were set up in a circle by the side of the stage and he sat down within the circle, grabbing his trusted pack of colouring pens and his Superhero colouring book. He blocked out Rose's voice, the only noise in the room, and concentrated on the picture of Superman. After colouring the full picture, Harvey dropped his pack and whined:

"I'm hungry!"

Rose stuttered to a halt, the interruption disrupting her speech. Scowling, she turned to glare down at the little boy who was staring doe-eyed up at her.

"You should not be talking over me. I am conducting an Assembly whilst the Headmaster is busy."

"But I'm hungry!"

Rose pinched the bridge of her nose. "Very well. Peter will take you to the kitchen."

Peter reacted to this news by rolling his eyes, not wanting to be in the company of a stupid two-year-old. Harvey shook his head furiously, shouting:

"I want Sarah to take me! I don't like Peter!"

"Feeling's mutual, little maggot." Peter sneered.

The word 'mutual' flew over Harvey's head, but being called a 'maggot' annoyed him. He stood up and stomped his foot.

"Don't call me that! I want to go with Sarah!"

"You'll do as you're told." Rose narrowed her eyes, unable to believe that the toddler was arguing against the Headmaster's trusted Prefects. "Peter will take you to the kitchen and you will have a sandwich. No sweets or unhealthy food. You've only just had lunch."

Pouting petulantly, Harvey went to the stage steps and sat down, bottom shuffling down the steps to get to the ground. He stood up and dashed out of the Hall, not waiting for Peter to escort him to the kitchen. Harvey ran along the corridor, giggling as he heard Peter chasing after him.

"Harvey! Come back here!"

It was a game of cat and mouse and Harvey was excited to be playing once again. He skidded round the corner, only to nearly crash into the Headmaster, who had left his office for an update on how the Assembly was progressing. When his ward tumbled to the floor in front of him, he stared down, masking his shock. Flurried footsteps alerted him to another presence and Peter came round the corner, slowing his pace as soon as he saw the Headmaster.

"Sir! I am sorry that I was running, but I was trying to catch up to Harvey. He wouldn't wait for me to take him to the kitchen and now, he's caused a disruption."

The Headmaster appraised Peter with scorn. "You know better than not to obey my rules, Peter. For breaking one, I shall expect you in my office after your last lesson, where you shall be writing lines." He directed his gaze downwards to the small child who had upturned his life, and frowned.

"I'm very sad to hear that you have not been listening, Harvey. You are not meant to be on your own around the school. It is not safe for someone so young. You are meant to wait for the Prefects and listen to their instructions."

"But hungry!"

The Headmaster arched an eyebrow. "You have to learn to wait for your food. We are not here to cater for your every beck and call. Now, I have told you before about running in the corridors. What feet do you use?"

Harvey sighed. "Walking feet."

"Correct. I am now going to ask Peter if you have been behaving whilst not in my company. I hope that you have been a good boy."

He stiffened at the words, feeling fear swell up as Daddy talked to Peter. Daddy was very strict on his behaviour and no doubt, he would now be getting into trouble.

"Well, Headmaster," Peter said, glad to enlighten the Headmaster of all the maggot's misdeeds. "Harvey has not been a good boy at all. Rose had to tell him off outside of the Hall for running and after he had finished colouring, instead of waiting for Assembly to be finished, he started demanding food! And said that he wanted Sarah instead of me, even though Rose had chosen me for the task!"

Harvey withered at the unseen glare he received. Although the lens of his adoptive father's glasses were too dark to see his eyes, Harvey could feel the eyes burning into his own.

"Harvey James! Dear me, it seems that you have been a bad boy today! In order for you to learn your lesson, I will be giving you a spanking."

Hearing those words, Harvey gasped and clutched his backside. Daddy had only spanked him once. They had gone to London for their first time together and Harvey, sitting in his buggy, had reached out and pulled down a glittering keyring off a shop display. He had played with it in his hands, the Headmaster totally unaware of what his ward had unintentionally taken as he paid for his items at the counter. They had left the shop, only to be stopped by the security guard on duty, who had noticed Harvey taking the keyring. The Headmaster had established that the theft had been accidental and forced Harvey to walk back into the shop and hand it over, watching from outside, hands gripping the empty buggy tightly. Harvey had stuttered out an apology that the staff accepted, but once he had re-joined the Headmaster, he had been bent over and smacked on the backside, before being stuffed back into his buggy.

The sudden flare of pain at the smack remained with him mentally and now, at the threat of more spanking, Harvey was petrified. The Headmaster knew that his ward wanted to flee, so quickly grabbed onto him, shooing Peter back to the Hall. He held onto Harvey and dragged him back to his office.

"You will be going to bed after your punishment. I am very disappointed in you, Harvey James Hunter."

Hearing his full name used, the little boy dipped his head and burst into tears. The Headmaster rolled his eyes, placing the boy onto the chair opposite his desk and shutting the door behind him. Out of the full name, Harvey was the only one he knew to be biologically true. The Headmaster had wanted a traditional English name for the boy's middle name, so had chosen 'James'. The surname had been more of a struggle, as even though officially he was the boy's adoptive father, he did not want the child sharing his surname. He had taken to flipping through past pupils' records to find the perfect surname. 'Hunter' had sounded suitable, so now his ward had an actual surname that was official.

Preparing for the upcoming punishment, the Headmaster said to Harvey: "Come here. This will last no longer than five minutes."


	3. SNAPSHOT THREE

**SNAPSHOT THREE: WHO AM I?**

From the age of five, Harvey began to start asking questions. Questions regarding his parents. He was in Reception at primary school and was collected by the Headmaster at the school gates every afternoon at three pm sharp. Compared to the other adults mingling in the playground, he was far older than the average parent. Harvey would tell anyone who asked; that the Headmaster was _his_ father, not understanding that the man was biologically not his true father. The Headmaster was raising him, and Harvey called him 'Daddy' because to him, he _was_ Daddy and as far back as he can remember, from when he was a small little baby, the Headmaster had always been there. Harvey was suspicious though of his family background, so after a lesson teaching the children about something called the 'family tree', Harvey had a number of questions for his father.

The Headmaster waited at the back of the crowd, head and shoulders above the rest of the parents. The adults within the town were of smaller statures compared to him and when the majority of the crowd consisted of women, he stuck out like a sore thumb. It was easy for Harvey to spot him and a big smile broke out on the little boy's face. He rushed over to the Headmaster, backpack banging against his knees and cried:

"Hi, Dad!"

Weak arms enclosed around the man's legs and Harvey rested his head against the bottom of the Headmaster's waistcoat.

"Missed you." He mumbled.

The Headmaster sighed, resting a hand against the boy's back. "I hope that you had a productive day?" He paused, then rephrased the question to suit a child. "Did you learn a lot today?"

Harvey pulled away, letting his arms drop down to his side, stepping back and grinning up at the Headmaster.

"Lots! We learnt about plants today and in PE, I ran the fastest! We did relay, and my team won!"

"Did you have to use your pump?"

Harvey shook his head gleefully. "Nu-uh. I was out of breath, but I didn't use it. Mr Fraser said I did really well!"

"I am pleased to hear that." The Headmaster's lips twitched into a slight smile. The first insight into difficult breathing that Harvey had ever experienced was when he was a year and two months old. The Headmaster had taken him out in the buggy, lost in his own mind, when his little ward took a sudden sharp intake of breath and promptly began to wheeze. The Headmaster had peered over the top and encountered the sight of a round face steadily colouring blue and laboured breaths emerging from a struggling chest and throat. Eyes wide and recognising the signs of an asthma attack, the Headmaster had rushed Harvey to the nearest hospital and got him treated straight away in the Emergency Department, the doctor explaining to him the results as the Headmaster was soothing Harvey off to sleep. He was officially diagnosed with having asthma and the Headmaster was handed information leaflets, a prescription sheet and a brand new blue pump. He was already first aid trained and knew what he was doing, so did not bother to read the leaflets and as soon as Harvey was old enough to understand, the Headmaster sat him down and explained his health problem to him.

Harvey was not very good in most areas, considering he was merely five years old, but he coped very well with his asthma. Outside of school, he kept the pump to hand at all times and within the building during school hours, where it was safely stored away, Harvey would always alert the teachers whenever his breathing was becoming laboured.

"Come." Holding out his hand, the Headmaster waited for Harvey to secure his small hand into a firm grip, before leading him out of the playground and back towards their home. Harvey, instead of breaking out into his usual frenetic skipping, walked along slowly. His face broke out into a puzzled expression and he didn't even pause to plead the Headmaster to take him to the sweet shop.

"Dad?"

"Yes, son?"

"Today, we were learning about the 'family tree.' Do we have a family tree?"

The Headmaster tensed. Here it was. Another question about 'family'. Why couldn't the boy simply accept that the Headmaster cared for him? Thus, he was a father to him.

"Yes… but it has not been updated for several years."

"Am I on there?"

"No. I have just said it has not been updated for several years."

"What's sev… seve-ral?"

"Many. More than five. So, you would not be on there because we didn't know that you would be coming along."

"Oh… Is my Mummy on there?"

"No…" The Headmaster sighed. This would have to be the time he informed Harvey of his true family connections. The boy was asking numerous questions and although he was aware there was no maternal woman on the scene, he had never delved into the particular whereabouts of his Mother and her current state.

Leading him through the park, (the Headmaster hoping to distract Harvey once he told him the news), he looked down at his ward and asked:

"What would you like to know?"

"Are you my Daddy? My real one? Cause you're really old."

The Headmaster bristled, slightly sensitive over his age, but managed to mask his annoyance to tell the little boy the truth.

"I am not your biological father, that means we do not share the same blood. I am your father, however, because I have raised you since you were very small and I have all of the correct documents stating that you are under my care. I have known you practically all of your life."

"W-Where's my Mummy and Daddy? My… bio-logical ones?"

"I do not know." The Headmaster sat down on a bench, hoisting Harvey up to balance on his knee. "You are adopted, Harvey, because none of your biological family were around to raise you. I found you… near my school."

"Near S-St Champions? Did you meet my Mummy?"

"No." The Headmaster said: "You were abandoned. Your family abandoned you. Left you out in the cold… I assure you that you are now in the best care that you could have received under the circumstances. Perhaps if you had grown up with your biological family, you would not have received the best care."

"M-My parents a-a-abandoned me? W-Why?"

"That I do not know." The Headmaster sighed. "Forgot about them, Harvey. They didn't even place you into a warm and safe environment, it seems that they did not want you. If they had simply been unable to cope, they would have at least left you in an Orphanage or a foster home. When I found you… there was a note."

"W-What did it say?" The tears dropped from his round chocolate-brown eyes.

"Your name." The Headmaster said softly. He wrapped his arms around his ward and pulled him to his chest. "One word."

"H-Harvey?" He sniffled.

"Exactly. Harvey. Your other names I chose myself, but your first name is your birth name. So, you have a slight link to your parents. I will look after you and protect you, I promise."

Harvey turned into the man's torso and slung his arms around his father's neck. It didn't matter if the Headmaster wasn't his real Dad, or if he was really old, he was always there for him.

_And that is all he wanted._


End file.
